'It is one of the best tournaments around' - AB de Villiers is excited to make his BBL debut

Mr 360 AB de Villiers is set to grace the Big Bash League for the first-ever when he takes center stage at the Gabba on January 14th. The champion batsman and former South African captain is one of the biggest signings in the history of the Big Bash League and the franchise will hope that the former Proteas legend proceeds to fill the void left by the retirement of former New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum.

De Villiers, who announced his retirement from international cricket in 2018, has been plying his trade in franchise T20 tournaments since then, and BBL is yet another stop for one of the greatest batsman to have ever graced this beautiful game. The former captain took to Twitter on Friday where he shared his excitement at making his debut in the Big Bash League.

“The standard of cricket is good in BBL”: AB de Villiers

De Villiers reckoned that his eyes are firmly set at performing for the Brisbane Heat and possibly lead them to the title glory. Speaking to an Australian cricket website cricket.com.au, de Villiers hailed BBL as one of the best T20 tournaments going around while also admitting that he has heard a lot of good things about the competition.

De Villiers said: “It’s one of the best tournaments around and I’ve been following it for a while now. From what I’ve heard from other players who have played there, it’s just all positives. The standard of cricket is good, and they get big crowds. I must also say the Brisbane Heat have always stood out to me.

They play the kind of cricket that I want to play – it’s quite aggressive and they go after the attack. And the Gabba is a beautiful cricket ground. It’s got a great wicket and games are always of high quality.”

Talking about the Brisbane Heat campaign thus far, the Chris Lynn-led unit has had an up-and-down season so far. With four wins in seven games, the Brisbane-based franchise is currently placed at the third spot in the points table. De Villiers will join the set-up with their 14th January fixture against the Adelaide Strikers at the Gabba, a venue that the legendary batsman hailed as a ‘beautiful cricket ground’.

🙌 @ABdeVilliers17 is almost here! #BringTheHeat #BBL09 pic.twitter.com/UFU3WRJVMp

— Brisbane Heat (@HeatBBL) January 10, 2020